Scholars at al-Azhar taught the Islamic precepts of
qUran, hadith, and law (fiqh) but also such fields
as philosophy and science. In the 13th century,
under the Mamluks, al-Azhar slowly regained
its prominence and was rebuilt and refurbished.
But it was under the ottoman dynasty, which
conquered Egypt in 1517, that al-Azhar became
again the dominant religious institution in Egypt,
especially in the 18th century.
The graduates of al-Azhar were the most highly
educated in Egypt as that country began to con-
front the challenges of modernity in the 19th
century. Napoleon Bonaparte, during his brief con-
quest of Egypt (1798–1801), looked to the scholars
of al-Azhar as potential leaders in the Egypt he
intended to create, but the university was also the
site of much resistance to the French presence. As
Egypt was brought under the firm rule of Muham-
mad Ali (d. 1848), like Napoleon, it was to the
graduates of al-Azhar that he turned to find men
who would lead the country in its modernization.
Among those he sent to Europe in the 19th century
to acquire modern scientific learning, many were
Azharites. In fact, until the founding of the modern
University of Cairo in 1908, al-Azhar was the only
institution of higher learning in the country.
Because al-Azhar combined a great deal of
religious prestige with a formidable, if traditional,
academic program, successive governments have
striven to reduce its power or to turn its power to
their own ends. The religious endowments that
had made al-Azhar financially independent have
been under governmental control since 1812. The
state also controls the appointment of the rector
of the university, a powerful and influential posi-
tion in Egypt. In the 1960s, the Egyptian national
government under President Jamal Abd al-Nasir
(r. 1954–70) reformed and modernized the edu-
cational program, expanding its teaching to such
fields as engineering and medicine. While this
broadened and expanded the university, it also had
the effect of weakening its religious character.
Nonetheless, al-Azhar, which is not a strictly
hierarchical institution, retains a certain tradition
of independence from the government and can
influence government decisions in some areas.
The government of Egypt has, thus, recently
granted al-Azhar an expanded role in the censor-
ship of films and books. More problematic for the
government, however, are the independent schol-
ars within the institution who condemn specific
government policies, such as Egypt’s peace with
israel or the United States. On the whole, how-
ever, the government-appointed rector and his
associates tend to have national and international
prestige, and when they speak for al-Azhar, they
often claim to be speaking for the Muslim com-
munity as a whole.
See also edUcation; sUnnism.John IskanderFurther reading: Chris Eccel, Egypt, Islam, and Social
Change: Al-Azhar in Conflict and Accommodation (Ber-
lin: K. Schwarz, 1984); Tamir Moustafa, “Conflict and
Cooperation between the State and Religious Institu-
tions in Contemporary Egypt.” International Journal of
Middle East Studies 32 (2000): 3–22.Al-Azhar Mosque in Cairo, Egypt (Juan E. Campo)K 80 al-Azhar